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If you are involved in a personal injury case, it is possible that you may be required to undergo a Defense Medical Exam (DME), also known as an Independent Medical Exam (IME). This is an exam conducted by a doctor hired by the defense or insurance adjuster to evaluate your injuries and provide testimony in court. It is important to know how to prepare for this exam to ensure that your rights are protected and your injuries are properly evaluated.

1. Don’t Bring Any Documents: When you attend the exam, do not bring any documents with you. It is important to be honest and transparent during the exam, and bringing documents may suggest that you are trying to hide something.
2. Answer Honestly: It is important to answer all questions honestly during the exam. Do not exaggerate your symptoms, but also do not leave anything out. The doctor is evaluating your injuries and it is important that they have accurate information.
3. Keep Your Answers Vague: When asked about the accident, keep your answers vague. Try to limit the facts that you give as to what happened in the accident. If any part of your body did come in contact with any part of the vehicle inside during the accident, then please tell the doctor that too.
4. Don’t Block Yourself In: If the doctor asks you what you can do as a result of your injuries, give them a list. If the doctor asks if there is anything else, never say no. Just say that you can’t remember or can’t think of anything else at the time.
5. Be Aware of Surveillance: The doctor or someone from their office will be watching you from the time you pull into the parking lot until you leave. They will put a report together for the defense lawyer, indicating if you had any trouble walking or any other difficulties during the exam.
6. Be Honest and Transparent: Remember to be honest and transparent during the exam. Don’t exaggerate your symptoms, but don’t hide them either. If there is a list of things that you are asked to provide, and you can’t think of anything else, let the doctor know that’s all you can think of at the time.
7. Don’t Fill Out Any Forms: If you are asked to complete any forms, ask for them in advance. Do not fill them out at the exam.

In conclusion, a Defense Medical Exam can be a stressful experience, but with the right preparation, you can ensure that your rights are protected and your injuries are properly evaluated. If you have any problems or concerns during the exam, do not hesitate to contact your personal injury lawyer. They are here to help you and will fight for your rights.

Five Things You Must Know About Commercial Vehicle Accidents

Accidents involving commercial vehicles, such as trucks and tractor-trailers, usually cause severe injuries to the people who are hit, and they total the vehicles they’ve been driving. Such a traumatic experience makes it difficult for the affected drivers and possibly their passengers to do much of anything at the accident scene, let alone take the types of action that would help them get compensated later.

Nonetheless, if you’re conscious and able to move around, there are some important things you can do at the scene that can help you later as you fight to reclaim your life. Below you will find five things you must know about accidents with commercial vehicles.

1) What You Should Do (And Not Do) at the Accident Scene

Here are the most important things you should do at the accident scene if you’re able to safely do them, along with what you should absolutely not do.

The first thing to do would be to call 911. This will alert the police and also summon an ambulance if needed. Next, you should document what happened, both in images and videos, as much as you are able. Be sure to get the truck’s license plate information if possible, as well as the driver’s name, driver’s license number, employer information, trucking company name, and so on. Pictures are the easiest way to document everything. Make sure that you email the pictures to yourself so you do not lose them.

Also get the names and contact information of any witnesses, so you and your lawyer can contact them later. And, of course, be sure to get whatever medical care you may need.

On the other hand, here is what you should NOT do: If you have any back, neck, or head injuries, do not try to move. Instead, rely on the ambulance to transport you safely to the emergency room.

Furthermore, do not give any statements, apologize, or talk about the accident to anyone, especially anyone from an insurance company. Don’t agree to being recorded. Anything you say will be used against you as you try to get compensated for your losses. Be sure to hire a Delaware personal injury attorney who has plenty of experience with truck accidents to help you.

2) Why Is the Damage in Commercial Truck Accidents So Severe?

Tractor-trailers and 18-wheelers are huge. They can weigh up to 80,000 lbs when they are fully loaded, which is more than 20 times as much as your average car, which weighs around 3,000 to 4,000 lbs. No wonder that a crash simply decimates a car.

Trucks also need a longer distance to stop, especially in inclement weather. Most of the time, they operate at high speed because they travel on interstates as they strive to deliver their goods in a timely manner.

No matter whose fault it ends up being, a collision with a big truck will cause severe damage to any cars and drivers that are hit.

3) Who Is at Fault in an Accident With a Commercial Vehicle?

After an accident, it has to be determined who was at fault. However, this is not as easy as it may seem. In a surprising number of cases, it’s actually the car drivers who are at fault. They might have been tailgating or driving in the truck’s blind spot. They might have also pulled in front of the truck without leaving enough room for the truck to brake.

Truck drivers are often at fault as well. They are under a lot of pressure to cover vast distances to meet their deadlines for deliveries. There are strict rules about just how many hours truck drivers are allowed to drive before they have to take their required rest breaks. However, high-quality, restful sleep cannot be legislated and can sometimes be hard to come by.

As a result, truck drivers are often tired and occasionally even fall asleep at the wheel. That can be a fatal mistake. Similarly, like so many other drivers, they may also fall into the trap of distracted driving. A short lapse in attention can mean the difference between life and death.

They must also be well-trained, both in how to operate and navigate their rigs and in how to check and take care of them. That way, they’ll be able to keep them in prime operating condition and avoid any mechanical failures.

4) Other Parties That Could Be at Fault

Truck drivers and passenger car drivers aren’t the only parties that could potentially be found at fault for a truck accident. The next party would be the company that employed or subcontracted the driver for a specific job. They are responsible for hiring safe drivers and training them properly. They should also allow them to do their job safely without putting them under too much pressure.

Trucking companies also have maintenance crews that are responsible for keeping the trucks in safe driving condition. The manufacturers of the trucks or their parts can also be held responsible if they have sold defective parts.

Furthermore, the crews that have loaded the truck could have made mistakes and created an uneven load. This could have caused the truck to lose its balance and topple over, especially in a curve or while passing another vehicle.

5) Why You Need an Experienced Truck Accident Attorney

As you can see, finding out who was at fault can get complicated and holding the responsible parties accountable can be a challenge. Moreover, all this has to be done within the two-year statute of limitations.

While trucking companies and truck manufacturers have high insurance coverage, their insurance companies will fight hard to protect their bottom line. They will make it as difficult as possible for the accident victims to collect any compensation.

To have a fighting chance, you need an experienced Delaware truck accident attorney who knows all their tricks and is willing to pursue your case in court.

Considering the severity of the damage that commonly happens in collisions involving commercial vehicles, there is a lot of money at stake. Compensating the injured parties for medical expenses, lost wages, potential future loss of income as well as pain and suffering can involve millions.

An experienced lawyer will know how to track down the parties that are at fault and fight to get you a fair payout. At Hudson, Castle & Inkell we have the kind of experience that will give you the best chance at getting fairly compensated for your injuries and losses.

If you have been injured in an accident with a commercial truck, or if a loved one has died in such an accident, call or email us to arrange for a free case evaluation. We will be glad to help you.

There are four elements that make up a medical malpractice claim. They are the following:

• Duty,
• Breach of duty or any deviation from the standard of care,
• Damages suffered and directly caused by the breach of duty, and, finally,
• Financial loss caused directly by the damages resulting from the breach of duty.

They must all be proven for a medical malpractice case to be valid, and if even one of them is missing, a medical malpractice case is unlikely to succeed. Below, we will discuss each of the four elements in more detail.

The First Element of a Malpractice Case

The first element is duty. This addresses the duty that the physician or other medical professional has to provide their patients with the standard of care that is customary in their profession. There must also exist a doctor/patient relationship between doctor and patient for the patient to be able to expect that kind of standard of care.

The duty of care requirement also extends to institutions involved in people’s medical care, including hospitals, emergency rooms, private medical and dental practices, and everybody who works there.

The kinds of things that are part of a medical provider’s duty include keeping patients fully informed about their medical condition and treatments, including any possible risks of procedures that might be undertaken. Of course, they should also take great care while providing any and all treatments.

The Second Element of a Malpractice Case

The second element is the breach of the duty of care. This means that the medical care provider deviated from the standard of care that could have reasonably been expected. For example, they may not use the kind of diligence that similarly qualified colleagues would have used.

Such deviations could include misinterpretation of test results, failure to order the correct types of tests, misdiagnosis, and recommending or administering wrong dosage amounts of prescription medication. They may also use wrong surgical techniques and treat their patients improperly in other ways.

These kinds of issues are difficult for a patient to spot. That’s why you need a skilled personal injury attorney, who has experience with investigating these issues and can engage highly qualified experts to assist in the case.

The Third Element

The third element involves damages that were inflicted on the patient through the medical provider’s negligent action. There must be proof of a direct cause and effect relationship. These damages could be physical, emotional, or financial.

They may include hospital bills and other costs resulting from the original treatment, as well as additional costs that will come from treating the long-term effects of the medical negligence. Additional expenses may result from mental health therapy, physical therapy, and home care.

Other losses include lost wages and lost earning capacity, reduced ability to enjoy life, as well as other pain and suffering.

In addition to compensating the patient for any financial losses and their suffering, an experienced medical malpractice attorney can also pursue punitive damages, especially in cases of egregious negligence.

The Fourth Element

After proving all of the above, the patients and their lawyers must also prove that there was a direct cause and effect relationship between the negligent action and the resulting injuries and the damage they caused.

This is very challenging for the patient, but an experienced and skilled medical malpractice attorney, together with expert witnesses who have expertise in the involved specialties, can often make a powerful case for the patient. It is critical to have strong proof that cannot easily be swept aside by the defense. That’s key when it comes to the anatomy of a medical malpractice case.

The Statute of Limitations

As you can see, medical malpractice cases can be complicated and a challenge to pursue successfully. Evidence has to be assembled, which includes witnesses and medical records as well as financial statements. In addition, the right kinds of experts must be found.

For a heart injury, you’ll need a cardiologist, for a brain injury, you’ll need a neurologist, and so on. Assembling all these experts and materials can take a lot of time.

At the same time, you have to race against the clock of the statute of limitations. What’s more, you should take action and hire a lawyer as soon as possible because evidence is crucial and it can disappear.

What makes the statute of limitation even trickier is that sometimes, the damage caused by the negligent action is not immediately obvious and can in fact take years to be discovered. This is especially the case when surgical instruments and things such as gauze were left behind in the wound after surgery.

While the statute of limitation allows for such a delay, it only does that to a point. The regular statute of limitations for medical malpractice cases is two years from the date where the error occurred, while the time can be extended to three years in cases where the patient was not aware of the problem until later.

If a child younger than six was injured through negligence or medical malpractice, the patient’s parent must file the lawsuit either within 2 years of the error or when the child turns six years old, depending on which date is later.

In all of the above cases, whether it’s two years, three years, or the special case of a child under six, the deadline can be tolled or delayed for 90 days. To extend the deadline in that way, the patient or the patient’s lawyer must send a “Notice of intent to investigate†to every defendant involved in the suit, such as the medical provider, a staff member, or the hospital.

The notice must be sent by certified mail to the defendants’ normal place of business, and a return receipt must be requested. It must include the name of the defendants and a brief description of the issue that is under investigation. It also has to be sent before the statute of limitation expires.

What Else Should You Know?

You should also know that there is no cap on punitive damages in Delaware. And if the patient was partially at fault, they can still collect a proportionate percentage of damages, just as long as the patient’s share is less than 50%.

If you have been injured by a negligent healthcare provider and suffered severe damages, be sure to seek out an experienced medical malpractice attorney. Call or email us for a free case evaluation. We will be happy to talk with you.

When we think of medical malpractice cases and who is likely to get sued for negligence and other causes of injury to their patients, we usually think of medical doctors, especially surgeons. But are doctors really the only healthcare professionals who can be held accountable for medical malpractice? As it turns out, the answer is no.

There is a range of healthcare professionals other than physicians that could be held responsible when a negative outcome occurs. They could be nurses, anesthesiologists, therapists, technicians, dentists, physicians’ assistants, pharmacists, and more. In fact, all medical care professionals can be held accountable.

But it doesn’t end there. Hospitals, clinics, and all kinds of other healthcare institutions and facilities can also be held accountable when something goes wrong due to negligence on their part, and a person is injured as a result.

Surgeons and physicians may have much more malpractice insurance than nurses and physical therapists, but that doesn’t mean that other healthcare professionals cannot or should not be held accountable. On the other hand, medical facilities and institutions likely carry far more insurance than even the physicians who work there.

You can find more details in the Delaware Code on healthcare medical negligence insurance and litigation. And you should absolutely talk to an experienced medical malpractice attorney if you have been injured due to medical malpractice.

Malpractice Committed by Medical Professionals Other Than Doctors

If a medical professional, even if they are not a doctor, makes mistakes while they treat their patient, they can absolutely be held responsible. Whatever their area of expertise may be, they are held to the standards of their profession.

A nurse, for example, may not have met the accepted standards that can be expected from nursing care. If they injure you as a result of their negligence or faulty treatment, they will be liable for the damages.

The process of proving that their negligence or faulty actions were indeed responsible for your injuries is essentially the same as it would be if the doctor had been responsible. But there are also differences.

Many nurses don’t carry malpractice insurance, and even if they do, it likely won’t be enough to compensate you for your losses. However, the nurse would have been working under the supervision of a physician, so the physician could be held responsible as well.

In addition, nurses tend to work within or in association with a medical facility, such as a hospital, a clinic, a group practice, a doctor’s office, or as part of a mobile care facility where they are assigned to visit patients and care for them.

In those cases, the facility that employs the nurses can also be held responsible. After all, the nurse’s employer would be responsible for hiring and employing competent staff, and they generally have much more insurance coverage than their nurses.

A nurse has multiple responsibilities when it comes to patient care, from checking medical equipment to administering medication. To prove that a nurse was responsible for your injuries, you must show they made an error of negligence, such as that they failed to respond to an emergency, administered the wrong medication, or gave their patient the wrong dosage of their medication. They may also have failed to monitor or adjust equipment properly, or failed their patient in a range of other ways.

To have a valid case, you must meet the usual requirements: that there was a nurse/patient relationship, that the nurse made a mistake due to negligence, and that the mistake led to the patient’s injury and ensuing damages.

What Qualifies as a Medical Malpractice Case?

If you have been hurt by faulty or negligent medical care, and you believe you may have a medical malpractice case, you should first consult an experienced medical malpractice lawyer who can review your case and evaluate how strong it is.

Of course, medical malpractice suits can be very challenging. Not only are expert witnesses required, at least usually, but the lawyers of the defendants and their insurance companies are going to fight back hard since they stand to lose a great deal of money. In addition, there are several rules that must be followed.

The Statute of Limitations

You also have to act quickly. Among the many things that make malpractice cases challenging is the statute of limitations. This means the case must be filed within a certain timeline. Fortunately, Delaware has a longer statute of limitations than some other states. Still, the case must be filed within two years, although under certain circumstances, that timeline can be extended to three years.

The longer timeline applies if the injury could not have been discovered within the expected timeline by the affected person because the symptoms of the problem were delayed. This sort of thing can happen in situations where, for example, the surgeon left an object inside the patient’s body that didn’t cause identifiable symptoms until a later time.

In addition, there is an option to get an extra 90 days by sending a certified letter to the defendant, announcing to them your intention to investigate. Still, time is of the essence, and any delays can cause problems.

Affidavit of Merit

Delaware law also requires that the plaintiff file an affidavit of merit as part of the complaint at the beginning of the lawsuit. For this, a medical expert witness must provide sworn testimony that there are credible grounds to believe that the normal standard of care was not adhered to by the defendant and that this has likely caused the injuries that were inflicted on the plaintiff.

Are There Limits on How Much Can Be Awarded in Delaware Malpractice Cases?

Some states limit how much can be awarded in a malpractice suit. Delaware does not have such limits. However, if the plaintiff was partially at fault for the injury, the award may well be proportionately reduced.

As you can see, suing for malpractice is challenging, and you will need to work with an experienced medical malpractice attorney. To get the help you need, call or email us for a free case evaluation. We will be happy to assist you.

Sexual abuse is a despicable crime that leaves its victims with devastating emotional and often physical injuries. Unfortunately, many victims do not tell anyone about what happened to them, and as a result, they suffer in silence while all too many perpetrators go free.

However, when the victims do have the courage to come forward and tell their stories, experienced personal injury lawyers who have represented a lot of sexual abuse cases can help them get compensated for their injuries and hopefully see the perpetrators receive their well-deserved punishment.

Sexual abuse lawyers are advocates for survivors of sexual violence. They counterbalance those feelings of disempowerment that victims often suffer from and fight for them in court as they strive to hold the perpetrators of sexual violence accountable for the pain and damage they have inflicted.

How Does a Sexual Abuse Lawyer Fight Sexual Abuse in Court?

First, experienced sexual abuse lawyers listen to the victim and get their whole story. This is an important step, not only to get the facts that are needed to win the case, but also to counterbalance those feelings of disempowerment most victims will struggle with long after the incident occurred.

In fact, many childhood sexual abuse survivors tell trusted loved ones only to find that they are not believed and even face strong resistance and denial. Having a trustworthy advocate who really listens and believes them is an important part of the healing process.

Of course, listening closely and getting the full story also helps with the next step, gathering evidence. The child’s or the adult victim’s testimony will be crucially important when the case is tried in court. When it is available, additional testimony from witnesses and people in which the victims have confided, will do much to strengthen the lawyers’ case.

This is especially important in cases of childhood sexual abuse, which are hardest to prove, especially since the case might be tried long after the fact due to the long statute of limitations or, in some states, even the absence of a statute of limitations for children who were under 18 at the time of the incident. In fact, the state of Delaware has issued detailed instructions in a Child sexual abuse protocol.

For adults, the statute of limitations is usually two years, which is the same as for other personal injury cases. That’s not a lot of time to gather all the facts. But in spite of that, time is of the essence and the case should go to court as soon as reasonably possible because evidence has a way of disappearing.

In addition to testimony of victims and witnesses, there is more evidence that can often be presented in court. This includes DNA evidence, medical reports, lab reports, and reports by other health care professionals including ,mental health care professionals.

Some of these overlap with another important group: expert witnesses, who can testify on the kind of health issues the child may have suffered, what it takes to recover from or at least cope with them, common signs that someone has been abused in the first place, and so on. This will become especially crucial when it comes to negotiating damage awards.

The Two Options in Court

Since sexual abuse is a crime, the perpetrator will likely be tried in a criminal court. If convicted, they will probably receive a long prison sentence, depending on the specifics of the crime. However, since the crime and the fact that the perpetrator committed it must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, there is a chance that they won’t be convicted. And even though a conviction, if it happens, will not compensate you for your losses, you’ll get the satisfaction that the criminal will be punished.

However, whether or not they were convicted in criminal court, you have the option of filing a civil suit against them in civil court, where you can recover financial compensation for your suffering and losses. And you should know that civil suits are much easier to win since the burden of proof is reduced and only a preponderance of evidence is needed to succeed with the case. Just be sure you have a sexual abuse attorney to help you.

What Damages Are Awarded?

Here are just some of the kinds of damages that can be awarded in sexual abuse claims: mental anguish, medical expenses, counseling, lost wages, pain and suffering, and much more. It is also possible to be awarded punitive damages.

Your lawyer will investigate the financial situation of the perpetrator to see what potential compensation would be available from that source, such as real estate, bank accounts, investments, and more. If they were not sent to jail, there would probably also be wages.

In addition, many perpetrators are part of a group or institution, including schools, churches, and so on, that may have helped them connect with their victims and are therefore alo culpable. In fact, churches and religious institutions, and even educational institutions nowadays often have insurance to cover them in the event that one of their members or employees should commit sexual abuse. So that source of money may also be available to compensate you.

What Will it Cost You To Retain a Sexual Abuse Lawyer?

If you’re wondering what it would cost you to retain a lawyer, don’t worry. You won’t pay a dime unless and until we win your case and your damage awards are disbursed. Only at that time will we collect a percentage of those damages as our fee.

So if you or someone you love has been sexually abused, get in touch. Call or email us for a free case evaluation. We will be happy to help you.

Surgery always involves risk. That’s why the best surgeons are among the best-paid physicians. They are acutely aware of the responsibility they have to make sure all goes well. Unfortunately, mistakes can still happen, turning a lifesaving operation into a potential tragedy.

Did you know that medical mistakes are the third most common cause of death in the United States? That’s truly shocking. And what’s even more shocking is realizing the types of surgical errors that contribute to those statistics. The five most common surgical errors sound almost like a cliche.

You would think that since they occur so frequently, there would be safeguards in place to prevent them from happening, and there are. You would also think that experienced surgeons wouldn’t make those errors, yet still they happen. Let’s take a closer look.

The Five Most Common Surgical Errors

There is a range of reasons that can lead to mistakes, and they vary to some extent with the type of mistake that is made. First, let’s look at the most common errors that can happen during surgery.

Leaving Foreign Objects Behind

One of the most common errors is that some foreign object is left behind inside the body as it is stitched up again. These objects could be clamps, gauze, or even a scalpel, and they can lead to severe injury and infection. They can cause a great deal of pain and often require additional surgery for their removal.

This could easily be prevented just by paying close attention, and by creating a checklist during the surgery, and afterward making sure that every item that was introduced into the site has been removed before the incision is closed up.

Performing the Wrong Procedure

Another horrible error that happens more often than it should, and that, of course, should never happen at all, is that the wrong surgery is performed. This could mean that there is a patient mix-up and the wrong patient is operated on. In that situation, a healthy organ might be removed in one patient, while the diseased organ remains in place in the other one.

It could also mean that the wrong surgery may be performed in one patient who actually requires a different kind of surgery. The consequences of these sorts of mix-ups can be severe.

How could that happen? Generally, it happens due to disorganization or some kind of mix-up of paperwork. Hospitals are busy, and surgeons are notoriously overworked, so unless everything is double- and triple-checked, a nightmare scenario can occur if someone slips up.

Wrong Side Surgery

Related to the surgical errors above and caused by similar problems in the operating room is the case where the surgeon operates on the wrong side of the patient. Instead of amputating the diseased left leg, for example, he amputates the good right leg. This is a horrifying error. Similarly, the good left kidney could be removed instead of the diseased right kidney.

Not only will the originally planned surgery have to be repeated, but the patient has lost a crucial organ or limb that cannot easily be replaced and can lead to permanent disability. This is the kind of thing nightmares are made of.

Anesthesia Mistakes

Yet another common mistake occurs when anesthesia is not properly administered. If too much is given, possibly without sufficient oxygen, it can cause brain damage or even death. If not enough is administered, the patient might wake up mid-surgery while being in excruciating pain. There can even be mistakes where the wrong drug is administered.

Nerve Damage & More

As the surgeon is working on the planned surgery, the scalpel could slip and cut into a nerve or another crucial structure. This kind of thing can cause great pain as well as potential dysfunction or possible paralysis. Similar incidents could result in bowel perforation and more, leading to dangerous infections.

Even minor surgery can result in severe side effects. During surgery to relieve sinus pressure, it can happen that the muscles that control eye movements are accidentally cut. This can lead to chronic double vision, and the patient will lose the ability to drive or work, or even read. If any of these kinds of errors should ever happen to you, speak with an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Why Do These Errors Occur?

There are many reasons why people commit errors, but in the context of surgery, they have much more serious consequences than in many other areas of life. They really should never happen, but they do. Talk to a lawyer about surgical errors and medical malpractice. Here are some of the most common causes of surgical errors:

Not enough planning before the operation: The surgeon and his team of nurses and assistants must be thoroughly prepared for the surgery, including possible complications. They also should have all the required equipment ready.

Poor communication: Communication is crucial in a team effort like surgery, and there really is no room for error.

Fatigue: Surgeons are notoriously overworked and tired, and tired people make more mistakes.

Drugs and alcohol: The stress of their professions drives some surgeons to drugs and alcohol, and they may even be under the influence when they are in the operating room.

What You Should Do If You Are Injured During Surgery?

If you have been injured during surgery due to a mistake made because of incompetence, carelessness, or under the influence, you should speak to an experienced medical malpractice attorney right away. They will be able to guide you through the process of getting compensation for your injuries. Call or email us for a free consultation. We will be happy to talk with you.